After South Korea’s national soccer team drew 0-0 with Thailand in a North and Central America 2026 World Cup qualifier, physical clashes broke out in the stands over a banner criticizing Chung Mong-kyu, the president of the Korea Football Association.
The fans were in full force as the Seoul World Cup Stadium was sold out, including away seats. With 64,912 fans in attendance despite the cold weather, South Korea failed to earn all three points against Thailand in front of a “clouded crowd” at Sangambeol.
Earlier, the team had topped the group with six points after back-to-back wins against Singapore and China under former coach Jürgen Klinsmann. The team had hoped to widen the gap with a win against second-placed Thailand, 홀덤사이트 but they had to settle for a draw on the day.
The team’s supporters, the Red Devils, showed their support for the team with a large banner criticizing Chung Mong-kyu, the president of the Korean Football Association.
The poor performance at the Asian Cup, coupled with a series of unsavory incidents surrounding the national team, has led to growing public opinion that Chung Mong-kyu should be held accountable.
Fans held up signs that read “Chung Mong-kyu OUT,” while some Red Devils officials waved large flags that read “Mong-kyu OUT.
On the 22nd, a video was posted on the online community showing an official from a security company hired by the Korea Football Association jumping up and forcibly snatching the “Mongyu Out” flag from the Red Devils. Many netizens referred to the incident as a “soccer version of the Mongyu Out flag”.
During the struggle for the flag, the pointy end of the long flagpole was pointed at the surrounding spectators, and it looked like the Red Devils were about to fall from their relatively high position.
However, according to the Korea Football Association, the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) rules prohibited the use of the flags, which were in large numbers on the day. As a result, there was a scuffle when they asked fans to refrain from using the flags.
According to FIFA regulations, banners, flags, clothing, paraphernalia, and leaflets with political or offensive messages are not allowed in stadiums.
Unauthorized banners larger than 2 meters by 1.5 meters are also subject to inspection before entering the stadium.
Hand flags can only be waved if they are 1 meter in size and flagpoles are made of flexible bendable material with a diameter of 1 centimeter or less.
By comparison, the Red Devils‘ “Mongue Out” banner was well over FIFA’s size limit, and the flagpole was made of wood, making it a “dangerous object”.
The Korean Football Association reportedly handed out a manual to security companies to politely ask them to refrain from bringing in prohibited items rather than forcibly removing them.
The security company demanded that the flags and banners be taken down, but the Red Devils refused, which led to a physical altercation.
Both the security company and the Red Devils were injured during the clash.
After a meeting between the Red Devils chairman, a representative of the security company, and the association’s safety officer, the conflict was resolved. However, it was pointed out that if a similar situation occurs in the future, more careful measures should be taken to ensure the safety of other spectators at the game.
There are also many voices calling for reflection on why the fans took such extreme action against Chung.